It is often said that the road to development begins with the development of roads. This is especially true in the case of small island developing states like Jamaica, where the build-out and maintenance of road infrastructure have considerable transformativel effect.

Road infrastructure enables connectivity, facilitates more efficient movement of people and goods, and unlocks potential by attracting investments — be it housing, commercial centres, hotels, entertainment spaces, tourist attractions to name a few.

The state of many main and community roads across Jamaica has come in for considerable focus and public discussion, especially as sustained rainfall over recent weeks and months exacerbate existing potholes and introduce new ones to the island’s road network.

While breakaways and potholes are major pain points and sources of inconvenience as pedestrians, motorists, and other commuters go about their lawful business every day, it is quite encouraging that the state of our road infrastructure is front and centre of the Government’s agenda.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness’s remarks at last week’s post-Cabinet press briefing signals that the Government is seized of the issue and focused on addressing the problem in a way that has never before been seen in Jamaica.

Holness telegraphed that inasmuch as his Administration crafted and pursued policies that concretised macroeconomic stability and fiscal discipline by building human- and systems-related capacity, as well as strengthening institutions, it will approach the overhaul of Jamaica’s road infrastructure in a similar manner. That is to say the comprehensive and institutionalised framework for building and maintaining the network of roads across Jamaica, that has long eluded us, will be established.

In a context in which we have seen fiscal transformation so much so that we are now reaping the dividends of our macroeconomic turnaround as a country, it would not be far-fetched or imprudent for us to be optimistic about a similar transformation as it relates to our road infrastructure.

It is important to note that a considerable proportion of Jamaica’s road infrastructure, especially community roads, were constructed several decades ago, and over the years were not appropriately maintained, largely because the country’s financial capacity didn’t allow for it. What is more is that a significant proportion of our roads are now well past their engineered useful life, which means that degradation at this stage is not surprising. Roads that are well beyond the number of years for which they were built to last are that much more susceptible to damage from usage, rainfall, and inadequate drainage. And, of course, in a context in which governments of yesteryear simply did not generate sufficient financial resources to overhaul and adequately maintain these roads over the years, it is not surprising that the chickens have come home to roost in the way they have these days.

Not to be overlooked in the grand scheme of things is the considerable stress our existing network of roads are now under due to significantly greater numbers of motor vehicles traversing them; including extremely heavy vehicles transporting construction material and other goods in the distributive trade. Roads that have never been rebuilt after being put down initially, and were never built to the engineering standards that would enable them to withstand the degrees of stress to which they are now being subjected, will understandably deteriorate over time.

We have witnessed rainfall patterns and have grappled with more frequent and intense weather systems to signal to us that the climate is indeed changing. Climate change is also having a deleterious effect on Jamaica’s road network, not only in terms of persistent and often times voluminous rainfall, but also the impact extreme heat has on the material used in road construction. Water accumulation on our roads due to inadequate drainage and run-off from paved areas in proximity to the roadways serve to undermine the road network, resulting in potholes and other damage.

Given the foregoing realities, it is heartening that a transformational approach, as articulated by Prime Minister Holness, is now underway to more effectively, comprehensively, and sustainably address the deterioration in our road infrastructure wrought by disinvestment in maintenance and upkeep of the network over these many years. It is prudent that, in addition to having got the country in the financial position to better address the state of our roads, the Government is using an objective and fit-for-purpose evidence-based approach.

Prime Minister Holness reported that National Works Agency (NWA) has embarked on an audit of our road network, which includes geographic information system (GIS) mapping and physically traversing our roadways, in a bid to accurately quantify our network of roads, ascertain the nature and scope of damage to the network, and document the data generated. The exercise also apprises the authorities of roads — many of which are private roads and community roads (especially in housing schemes and gated communities) — that were not in their inventory of roads, but are in need of maintenance and repairs in keeping with the expectations of the tax-paying citizens who utilise them.

Perhaps the most game-changing of the strategies to tackling the state of bad roads across the island is the focused attention that is being placed on the superintendence of our road network, that is how our roads are administered. While there is no definitive position as yet on the question of establishing a single road authority in Jamaica, considerable emphasis is being placed on approaching road construction and repairs in a consolidated, modern, and purpose-designed manner. The new approach to administering our road network is being supported by investment in human- and systems-related resources, strengthened institutional capacity, and more effective budgeting for road repairs and maintenance; bringing a greater sense of reliability and certainty as to how, where, and when respective roads across the island will be built, reconstructed, or maintained.

The Shared Prosperity through Accelerated Improvement to our Road Network (SPARK) Programme heralds the dawn of a new beginning in terms of road repairs and maintenance. Whereas $20 billion is earmarked for repairs to main roads, many stakeholders delight at the fact that $20 billion is also earmarked for our often-neglected, overlooked, and underserved community roads. Well-thinking Jamaicans should delight at the equitable basis on which works will be undertaken across all 63 constituencies, the fact that they were included in a consultative process in determining roads to be fixed under SPARK, and the fact that a programme of this magnitude was conceptualised and coordinated to move through the public investment assessment and procurement processes with unprecedented expedition.

We look forward to works under SPARK commencing in the weeks ahead and, indeed, the dividends to be derived from an overhauled, more effective, and sustainable approach to the administration and management of road repairs and maintenance across Jamaica.

Marlon Morgan is a member of the Jamaica Labour Party’s Communications Task Force.